


The Heavens and The Sea

by Maeoreth



Category: Batman Beyond, Justice League & Justice League Unlimited (Cartoons), Justice League Beyond (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2016-07-18
Packaged: 2018-07-24 14:32:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,304
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7511942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maeoreth/pseuds/Maeoreth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My take on a Young Justice/Justice League Beyond/Teen Titans. Set on an alternate Earth that kind of blends a little of the old canon, New 52 canon, and the DCAU.</p><p>In this world, before the Justice League formed, Themyscira and Atlantis already had dealings with each other. An accident nearly caused a war, and to stave off the threat, Princess Diana and Prince Arthur made an agreement. They would have a child, raise it together, and the child would unite the nations. </p><p>17 years go by, and the child is missing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Conner’s feet gently landed on the cool, metal flooring next to Clark’s. Their initial relationship was rocky, but Clark has warmed up to Conner in more ways than the young Kryptonian had expected. He glanced up at his elder, whose hair has begun to grey around the edges of his ear. Clark returned his glance, but said nothing, instead nodding his head forward. Conner stepped forward, and made eye contact with the woman standing at the nearest console, his biological cousin, Kara. She smiled at him before turning and looking around. There were several elder League members present, including most of the Bat family, much to Connor’s surprise. Commissioner Barbara Gordon was even present. He hadn’t expected the meeting to be so… large.

“Who are we waiting on?” Says a deep voice Conner hasn’t heard in years; that of John Stewart. A young man in a metal suit and Shayera stand next to him.

“Who are we always waiting on?” Answered the Martian in the corner.

At that moment, two blurs zipped around the corner, “Sorry! Traffic sucked,” says the taller blur, who revealed himself to be Wally West, and the shorter was his cousin, Bart Allen. The two only received weird stares for that remark, before Kara cleared her throat.

“ _ Anyway, _ now that everyone’s present, we’ll begin,” a photo was pulled up on the overhead monitor of a young woman. Her features were prominent, her skin a tan/olive color, and her hair dark. Her eyes stood out, one a deeper blue than the other. “As some of you already know, nearly twenty years ago, there was an incident on the beach of Themyscira. A washed up Atlantean arrived. No one knows what his intentions were, but his and a Themysciran scout’s bodies were found an hour later; we believe they killed each other,” another image, this one of the beach the day the scout and the Atlantean had been found, appears next to the young woman, “Themysciran oracles warned Queen Hera and later, Queen Atlantia, that their deaths were a warning sign that a war between the nations would wipe out them both. But their deaths also caused an outcry from the two peoples for war. Queen Hippolyta and Queen Atlanna managed to come to an agreement, their grandchild would carry the burden of both nations.”

Queen Diana stepped forward, “Arthur and I,” at his name, Aquaman stepped forward as well, “conceived a child to spare our countries from their fate.”

“Her name is Harmonia,” the King added, placing a delicate hand on Diana’s shoulder, “and as of two days ago, she’s missing.”

A disgruntled voice from the Bat Family corner spoke up, “So why are we here?”

“Because,” the Batman himself ground out, “you’re going to find her.”

“The League is under some stress,” Kara added, “Rumors are coming in that Apokolips is on the move again, we have reason to believe that Lex Luthor has somehow returned and is trying to recreate the Secret Six, and Nick Necro has been spotted.”

Clark stepped forward a little, Conner moving to keep up, “Everyone here who isn’t already a League member has been nominated by Bruce and I to form a small team. Due to Harmonia’s ancestry, we believe she could be incredibly dangerous, both to the people around her and to herself. She needs to be found and returned to Themiscyra or Atlantis for her own safety.”

“What do you mean  _ could _ ?” Conner finally asked, looking confused.

“Harmonia is a very private young woman,” Diana answered, her voice wavering with sadness, “I-... We agreed not to press her into receiving lessons about her abilities, so she never shared. We know she possesses my strength and flight, as well as Aquaman’s ability to swim, but little else. Those could be all the abilities she possesses, or they could be merely the tip of the iceberg.”

There’s a pause as everyone digested that, and then the newest Batman, someone Connor hadn’t met yet, stepped forward, “Who knew Harmonia best? Who was she closest to, would tell anything to? Who was the last to see her?”

Queen Diana turned to a young woman standing behind her and the Themysciran stepped forward, “I was the last to see her, Batman. She had ordered me to go find some food for us, as we’d been dueling and had become hungry. When I returned, she was gone.”

Queen Mera stepped aside, and led a girl, younger than anyone else present, forward as well, “This is Princess Mareena. She and my step-daughter are very close.” The young girl smiled, nervous.

Batman’s eyes narrowed a little at the teen, “Did she mention this to you at all? Any hint or clue?”

The girl shrunk in a little, “I-I… Well, she-... I…” She put her face in her hands, trying not to cry.

Batman pursed his lips, before pulling back the cowl and walking over to her. He crouched once in front of her, reaching and tenderly cupping a cheek. “It’s okay. You can tell us. You won’t get in trouble, I’ll make sure of it.”

She looked into his eyes, wide and trusting. She swallowed, and then, “She’s been talking about wanting to run away for a while. I--I would’ve said something, but she made me swear on my honor not to tell. Besides, I never thought she’d  _ really _ do it.”

“Did she tell you how she was going run away?”

“She started finding old pieces of the jewelry Queen Diana and Mom and Dad gave her. She said she knew a man in the Surface World, a man who didn’t ask questions. He helped her sell off her jewelry to the person who’d pay the most. She had somewhere he could directly deposit the money, so when she was ready to run away, she’d already have a stash built up to support herself.”

“Wooooooooooow,” Wally West interjected, seemingly trying not to laugh, “You raised one smart cookie, Diana.” The Queen, in turn, gave him an annoyed look, which only made him grin wider.

“You’re lucky I cared for your Great Uncle dearly, Wally.”

“Did she mention,” Batman cut in before he lost the girl’s focus, “anywhere she wanted to go? Anyone she wanted to meet?”

Mareena seemed to consider this question, then she looked up and smiled a little, “Yeah! She said she always wanted to visit the Superman Museum in Metropolis!” Her smile faltered, “But that was a long time ago. I don’t know if she still does.”

“Did she say  _ why _ she wanted to visit the Museum?” Clark asked, and Conner fought off a smile.

“She wanted to prove she was just as strong as he is! She used to go on and on about how she was going to lift up the statue, you know, the big one in the middle? She’s gonna lift it up and send it to see her grandpa. I don’t know what that means, though.”

“I do,” Old Man Wayne said, his eyes narrowed to fine point, “Her grandfather is Zeus on her mother’s side, who the Romans later renamed Jupiter. She wants to launch it into space. Technically vandalism,” he turns to Harmonia’s parents, “But so long as she doesn’t actually damage the statue, I doubt anyone will care enough to press charges.”

“When did she say she wanted to be as strong as Superman, Mareena?” The new Bat asked, regaining the girl’s attention.

She shrugged a little, “I don’t really remember. But it was a long time ago, we were just little girls back then. But she’s always loved everything having to do with Superman; he’s her favorite.” The last part is stage whispered, like it’s a secret. Over her shoulder, Diana and Arthur tried not to glare at their friend, but he avoided their eyes. “Promise you won’t tell him, Batman. She’ll be sooooooo mad at me.”

“Your secret’s safe with me, Mareena.” The girl stepped back to hide behind her mother again, and Batman looked up at Kara. “Your first lead for your bloodhounds.”

The Kryptonian girl only smiled in return, “Good hunting.”

He gave her a confused stare in return before shooting it over at Bruce Wayne, who smirked. “You were one of my nominees, Batman.”

“I thought we agreed--”

“We  _ did _ , until two days ago. Harmonia could mean the beginning of a new era, or the end of this one. If my estimates are correct, we’re not talking cities she could level, or even small countries. Continents. I’m too old, making you my next choice.”

The two glared at each other for a tense few seconds, before Batman’s shoulders finally sagged. “Who else is coming?” He asked, dreading the answer.

“I also selected Bart Allen and Static.”

Clark cleared his throat, “I’m nominating Warhawk, M’Gann M’orzz, and Conner.” When his name was mentioned, Conner’s eyes went wide. Clark had said there was something the League needed him to do, but finding a Princess? Not what he’d had in mind.

“Batman,” Kara started, pausing until she had his attention, and then pressing forward, “As you have the most solo field experience by far, you’ll be heading this group.” He heaved a deep breath, but nodded, “Also, per Mr. Wayne’s request, this is only considered a temporary alliance, not permanent membership.”

“Wow, you  _ really _ want me on your team,” Batman remarked, a little snarky.

“You're the best choice for tracking Harmonia while not actively trying to confront her,” Bruce shot back, giving a pointed look at two men standing next to him, each looking to be in their mid to upper 30’s. “Yes, we  _ really _ want you on this team, and more importantly, in charge of it.” Batman’s eyes have already wavered, however, and he looked as though he’s trying to sort through some sort of epiphany while he’s having it. Bruce raised an eyebrow, “Batman?”

“Confront… Confront her.” Batman whipped around, “Kara, can I use your computer?” The Kryptonian stepped aside, and he dashed to the keys. “Confront… Confront… Confront…” He muttered under his breath as he pulled up recent activity in Metropolis. He filtered out all the Kryptonian sightings, then criminal activity, leaving just the abnormal and bizarre. “Has anyone noticed that in the last two days, Metropolis has had a sudden increase in rainy weather?” He asked over his shoulder to no one in particular. “It’s the middle of Summer and not Gotham City, why is Metropolis getting rain?”

“I haven’t been able to find a source; scientists are calling it a fluke,” Kara answered from his elbow and he shook his head.

“No, a fluke would rain a little and then pass over. Two days, nonstop raining? Either someone’s trying to flood the city, or someone has abilities they can’t control.” He typed a little more, and then stopped suddenly. His fingers hovered in silence as he looked at whatever it was in front of him, and then Kara leaned over and pushed a button, pulling up the feed onto the overhead monitor.

It’s a store camera that looked out to the street. Across the road, a young woman pulled her coat in tighter to fight the storm, hiding her features. The rain could be seen landing on the camera lens and on large puddles in the road. She walked, and a man jumped out from an alley created by the space between two stores. He grabbed her and shoved her into the wall, shoving what looked like a gun into her face. He demanded something of her, and there’s a pause before her eyes move up to meet his. In the heartbeat that they make eye contact, all the rain stopped. It didn’t stop raining, **the rain stopped** **_falling_ ** . It hovered, suspended in a bubble around them. The man didn’t notice until it was too late. All the rain around them merged into a singular stream, shoving into the man and pushing him off the woman. He laid out in the road, trying to register what just happened, coughing and sputtering, as she walked over to him. Her features are still hidden by the shadows, but the gleam of the Amazonian sword she drew from her side was unmistakable. There’s another pause as she told him something, and then she put the sword away, only to give him a little money and shoo him off. She returned to the sidewalk where she’d been and continued on her way.

“Holy shit,” someone mumbled from behind Connor, and he couldn’t help but concur.

Batman’s fingers hovered only for a second longer before he started pulling up other nearby camera feeds, all from two nights ago. He managed to backtrack the woman’s progress to a nearby store, where she’d bought a backpack and some supplies, all of which were shoved inside of her coat when she stepped outside to protect from the rain. Batman got a shot of her in the store, and once the image was sharpened up a bit, they were finally able to make out her face.

“Harmonia,” Queen Diana worried. Batman updated the photo to include blonde hair, seeing as he’d noticed it’d recently been bleached.

He sped up the tape to when she paid, and made a soft noise of frustration when Harmonia used cash. He continued using the footage to follow Harmonia, and caught her entering a hotel not far from the Superman Museum. He immediately pulled up the hotel, cracking into their systems and looking at who was there that night.

“Found her,” he said after a long pause, “Harmony Prince, age 22, room 2100… and her credit card information…” Bringing up the records, everyone’s eyes widened at least a little to see $20,000,000 in her account, which is conveniently two years old and had monthly deposits since it’s creation of over $800,000. The second half of it was direct deposits, but the first half was from an auction house in Coast City. “She checked out this morning.”

“But we have somewhere to start,” Conner ventured, and Batman nodded.


	2. Chapter 2

Six. Months.

Six months, and  _ nothing _ .

It seemed every time they got close, she was just two steps ahead. That night in Metropolis, when they arrived, she had already skipped town. A week later she was spotted outside a club in Coast City blowing some money. When they closed in, she was gone again. The third time, in Atlantic City, there was a note left behind on the bed.

_ Found me yet? -HP _

When they spotted her next, in New York City, she'd added in several streaks of pink and purple into her hair, and put on makeup to make her face look less olive. She even shaved her eyebrows a little to give them a different shape. Bruce made the comment that this was to make facial identification harder. She disappeared again within an hour of the team arriving to her hotel room. WIth a total of seven failed attempts at bringing in the Princess, Terry was ready to call it quits. But at the same time, he couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so challenged. Every time she moved towns, she got better at hiding. She changed her look, got new clothes, and integrated into a totally new culture. The notes she left behind made him feel like a brainless cat chasing an incredibly clever mouse. But every time they spotted her, they were able to find out more about her abilities. They discovered she has complete hydrokinesis, superhuman strength, stamina, speed, endurance, durability, reflexes, agility, senses, and healing. They also found out that she has Amazonian Bracelets of Submission, that she had reforged into silver fingerless gloves, and a Lasso of Truth. Bart described her as a human-looking truck. 

He drug himself into the meeting hall that he'd been dragged into six months prior to accept this mission, his team falling in behind him. They all looked embarrassed, as well as they should, given that the six of them couldn't find one Princess. The two Queens stood on the far side of the room as Kara reprimanded them. Queen Diana looked more angry than upset, while Queen Mera was obviously just struggling to keep it together. Terry couldn't help but admire the two of them; they had reason to hate each other. Most women probably would. But it was obvious that they held each other in high respect, and he guessed they may have even been friends when no one was looking. They've known each other for a long time, helped raise a daughter together, even fought together on more than one occasion. Something as petty as a one night stand from nearly twenty years ago obviously wasn't going to stand between them. Terry noticed Queen Diana turn to murmur a word of encouragement to Queen Mera, and a glint of something caught his eye.  _ Wait, what was that? _

Standing, he approached the Queens. Extending his hand to the elder woman, he murmured to her, "Your Highness, may I see your earring?" Surprised at his boldness, Diana stared at him for a tense few seconds before relenting. He turned it over in his hand, and after an eyebrow was raised in silence, he lifted his arm into the air before throwing the earring at the ground as hard as he could. Weapons of all manner leapt into people's hands, enraged at his action, but he simply crouched down and pushed aside the small pieces. Standing, he held something up to eye level, something that  _ definitely _ shouldn't be there.

"What is that?" Diana asked, her anger subdued for the moment.

"A listening device," Terry answered, smirking a little, before turning to show the team and Kara. "This is how Harmonia's been staying out of reach for so long; Queen Diana has been privy to all of our meetings and information. She just waits until we seem close, and then moves." Bart zips over and takes the listening device over to the computer, plugging it in.

Queen Diana shook her head, "Those were the last things she gave me before she disappeared."

Mera's eyes widened at that revelation, and she yanked her earrings, smashing them on the ground as well. "So were mine!" Stooping, Terry picks up two more listening devices.

Connor shook his head, "Flash was right; Harmonia's a smart cookie."

Diana muttered, "She knew we would follow wherever she went." 

"But now that we know," Terry started, trying to renew hope, "That puts us one step ahead of her. Bart, can you eliminate the last few minutes of conversation?"

"So we can feed her false data?" The speedster asked, grinning, "Done and done. I've pieced together old bits of audio stored in the device's hard drive. Give me the other three so I can do the same for them."

"Good," Diana said, "The people of Themyscira are getting restless."

Mera added, "So are the Atlanteans."

Terry managed a small smile for the Queens, "Don't worry, your Highnesses. It will be a far easier to get Harmonia back now."

Within a week, they found her once more. Harmonia was hiding out in Gotham City. Everyone audibly cringed when those words were uttered the first time. She was announced as Oscar Cobblepot's, the late Penguin's illegitimate son and successor, latest girlfriend. She spent most evenings in the old Iceberg Lounge, still standing and operating as though it hadn't been many, many years since its founding. Some nights she simply enjoyed the entertainment, but sometimes she took part, singing songs for her  _ darling _ new boyfriend. It was there that she was ‘discovered’ by a local jazz group that occasionally played the Iceberg, but they also played a lot of upper class, high end charities, fundraisers, etcetera. They would invite her to come along on some of those nights, singing for their group.

Terry very quickly found himself an invitation, on the behalf of the Wayne family, to one such event.

When he arrived, he deduced that he wouldn’t be able to get the rest of the team in, so he ordered them to stay nearby in case if things shifted south, as they tended to in Gotham. He mingled a little, as was required. An implant had been imbedded inside his ear, allowing for him to hear anyone with access to the channel (the Justice League, former and current, up in the Watchtower, and the Bat family in the Batcave), and he wore thick-rimmed glasses, for sending visual information to complement the audio. It was mostly quiet, except for Bruce, asking him to greet a few important people to the Wayne family. It was no one anyone in particular cared about, but appearances had to be kept for the secret identity to be convincing. When he finished, he made his way to the bar, ordering a drink. It earned him a fast reprimand, but Bruce defended him. As people ate ordeurves, music gently played in the background, and Terry put a finger to the earpiece, making eye contact with himself in the mirror across the bar from him.

“I don’t think she’s here.”

Bruce was first to answer, “Patience, Terry. The event hasn’t formally began yet; they may be keeping her in the wings until everyone shows up. A fairly common practice at these types of ordeals.”

There was a snort from Bart, “ _ Ordeals _ ? I thought Wayne's  _ loved _ fancy events with people not-as-rich-as-they?”

Terry rolled his eyes, “Can it.”

Then the music stilled, and the room went quiet as a man approached the microphone at the stage, “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.” He launched into a spiel about the event that Terry only halfheartedly pretended to be interested in. “Well, I suppose that’s enough from me,” people laughed and he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why, “We have a special guest with us this evening! She may not look like much, but her voice can turn a heart made of stone to pure snow. Please welcome, Gotham’s very own,” Terry fought not to laugh, “Harmony Prince!”

There were a few shocked gasps around the room as a few recognized her name from local tabloids. Oscar Cobblepot had inherited his father’s reputation, and so had Harmonia, by proxy. The man disappeared, and out strode a young woman across the stage. When she went to the mic, the light shone on her face, and Terry felt all breath leave his lungs. She looked into the crowd and gave a gentle smile.

 

“ _ Knock one, two, three on the wall, _

_ That will be our secret call, _

_ You’ll find me under your spell, _

_ Secret safe I won’t tell, _

_ Knock one, two, one, two, _

_ One, two, three… _ ”

 

The music started, and Harmonia’s eyes wandered the crowd, but Terry found himself rooted in place. Her hair had been dyed back to it’s original black to remove all the color she’d put in it (having formerly been a bright fucking rainbow). All of it was wrapped up and curled behind her head and held in place by pins, while one bang was pushed back toward her ear, and the other was wrapped into a little curl and pinned to the side of her head. Her makeup was more subtle now than it’d been in weeks, making her look more like her former self.

Her dress was one that couldn’t be more perfect for the setting; formal, lacy, a little revealing, and very gothic. The top half was a see-through black corset, with a thick black bra. The neckline wasn’t as low as Terry had seen before, but low enough to make Aquaman growl in his ear. There was a red floral pattern to contrast, wrapping around her waist like a sash, her neck like a choker, her shoulders to mimic straps, the very top of her left breast and all of her right going down to her navel, and a small red piece inside her right elbow for an accent. The bottom half was a thick black skirt with silver streaks running down between the folds, flowing outwards and reaching the floor. 

“Harmonia…” He only half heard Queen Diana murmur, so enraptured in the Princess.

Mera spoke next, “She’s more beautiful than I remembered.”

“She’s six months older now than the last time you saw her,” Bruce just  _ had _ to point out.

Terry, unfortunately, had the desire to ravish her to the point of incoherence. His or hers, he wasn’t sure he cared.

“Holy shit,” Bart finally muttered after a tense chorus. “You didn’t mention she was  _ hot _ .”

Warhawk  _ tried _ to come to his rescue, “She is…  _ very _ attractive.”

“Duuuuuuuuude,” Static said just above a whisper.

Even Connor had to chime in, “You said it, Static.”

Terry felt M’Gann try to look through his eyes to see Harmonia, and he just  _ barely _ managed to react in time to keep her out of his suddenly dirty thoughts. 

Then he heard Bruce sigh, “She’s exotic, and completely unique. No one on Earth has ever seen someone like her, given her genetic makeup. So yes, she’s beautiful, but she’s also  _ your target _ and primary objective.”

“She’s also  _ my daughter _ .” The underlying threat from Aquaman got everyone’s minds out of the gutter fast.

He heard M’Gann giggle into the intercom, “Oh, c’mon Aquaman, they’re just trying to give her a compliment!”

Terry could almost  _ feel _ the snarl in Queen Diana’s voice, “M’Gann, I will forgive you this once for defending their primal instincts, because I know how naive you can be. Trust me, those were  _ not _ compliments on Themyscira.”

Then there was a voice that felt like it was right over his shoulder, “Terry,  _ stop staring _ .” He jumped what felt like three feet in the air at the voice of Dick Grayson, who immediately fell apart laughing. After glancing around, he realized that Dick must’ve just arrived at the Batcave and was speaking over the intercom.

Before he could answer, the song was over. Harmonia descended the stage, and was headed straight for him.


	3. Chapter 3

Terry just  _ barely _ managed to find something to do to make his starring less obvious. Instead, his eyes bore straight into his glass, trying to look bored.

Then he heard her speak next to him, “One glass of water, please.” He heard the glass be set down next to him, and her soft ‘thank you’ in response. He couldn’t help but glance up when she went to take a sip, but his eyes went back to his own drink. “So,” the glass was set back down, “What did you think?”

Terry finally allowed his eyes to look up and meet hers, “Needs more filtration; I can still taste the dirt from the river.”

It took her a second before she clapped a hand over her mouth and laughed into it, “Oh my god!” Her hand moved from her mouth to her eyes as she laughed, “The water, oh my god, you meant the water.”

He chuckled, nodding. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist.”

She shook her head, putting a light hand on his arm, “No, no, that was really funny. I needed that laugh.” Smiling to herself, she glanced away.

There’s a pause, “I thought you were wonderful.”

She turned back to smile at him again, and he felt his throat constrict, “I should hope so,” she teased, “You stared at me the whole performance, Mr. McGinnis.”

He  _ tried _ to look mortified, “Did I? Oh god, I’m sorry.”

Harmonia shook her head, “No, it’s okay, it’s nice to have a fan.”

Terry then did a double take, “Wait, how do you--?”

She rolled her eyes, “Come on, who in this room  _ doesn’t _ know you? You’re the son of Bruce Wayne, richest man on like, the planet? It’s amazing you don’t get mobbed by girls everywhere you go.”

He laughed a little awkwardly, “Oh, yeah, good point.”

“That and I keep small tabs on Batman.”

Terry did everything he could not to spit out his drink, and succeeded, “I’m sorry, what was that?”

Harmonia shook her head, chuckling, “C’mon, Mr. McGinnis, it doesn’t take a  _ genius _ . Who else could afford the gadgets, gizmos, suits and cars? While also being intelligent enough to keep up a convincing public identity to throw people off his trail? Not to mention, he’d have to have multiple degrees in incredibly varied fields; how many bombs has he stopped going off? Antidotes he created himself for brand new poisons devised by his enemies? That takes more than skill. There’s only two people I would  _ ever _ accuse of being Batman, and that’d be Lex Luthor, obviously not since he lives over in Metropolis and has  _ proven _ he’s more villainous than good, and Bruce Wayne. If that’s not enough, when he was young, he disappeared for a few years, went into hiding. Then, the like,  _ day _ he returns, so arrives this new figure on the scene calling himself The Batman? All the evidence points to it.” She chuckled and took another sip of her glass, “But Bruce Wayne’s old now. His physique has warped from years of fighting criminals, falling from skyscrapers, and getting nearly blown to pieces. There’s no  _ way _ he’d fit in the new Batsuit that’s been moosing around Gotham’s night scene. Which obviously means he’s passed it on to one of his two sons, and if he’s as smart as I’ve always chosen to believe he is, he didn’t pass it on to Damien.”

Terry finally cleared his throat to interrupt her tirade, “What makes you say that?”

She rolled her eyes and shot him a small smirk, “He’s wildly unpredictable and incredibly confrontational? Has a history of violence and abusive behavior?” She shook her head again, “No, he can’t be Batman. He needs to find peace in himself, and maybe learn a little patience. But you? You fit the bill.”

“What about you, Princess? You don’t fill Themyscira’s and Atlantis’ bill?”

The glass in her hand shattered, and she picked up a towel to fake holding a wound, while she backed away from the bar. Terry was quick to follow, putting his hand in hers, helping her hold the towel against the ‘injury’. He pulled her over to a quieter side of the room, and pretended to be administering care to her hand while her expression saddened.

“I was really hoping you wouldn’t say that,” she pursed her lips, then chuckled, “Can we just, not talk about them?”

“You just went on a big tirade about my dad, and I’m just not supposed to talk about yours?”

She snorted, “Fine. Give me the lecture. Tell me all about how sorry I should be for worrying them and running away, how I should go home right now and beg forgiveness for being such a horrible child to such wonderful, loving parents.”

Terry wrapped and tied the towel around her hand, his eyes slowly raising to meet hers, “Actually, I was going to say that while they miss you terribly, I’m more interested in why you chose to run in the first place. Mareena said you’ve been planning this for sometime.”

She used her free hand to rub her eyes, “And here I gave her my dessert for  _ two years _ to keep her quiet.” She sighed, her shoulders sagging, “Because, and I know I’m going to sound like a prissy rich girl when I say this, but because palace life actually  _ sucks _ . Everything I ever wanted? Given to me. I wanted for nothing, but I also achieved nothing. And in return? Everything I had needed to be freely given. I had no privacy or space. My whole life on display. It’s why I hid my powers from my parents; I just wanted something to myself. Not to mention, I had no friends or anyone who seemed to be genuinely interested in me. Mareena was the closest to that I could get, and even she had to maintain a sense of formality around me, because I’m the heir. My whole life has been wrapped around something that hasn’t even happened yet, and no one’s actually convinced me that what they’re asking me to do can even be done. It just has to be. It’s not that I can or can’t, it’s that I must. What happens when I fail? According to Themysciran oracles, everyone dies.”

Terry snorted, “No pressure.”

Harmonia laughed sardonically, “No kidding. There’s no margin for error. I’m just supposed to come into power in six months and unite two nations ready to gut each other. For fuck’s sake, I’m a descendent of warriors, not philosophers, I don’t know how to make those kinds of decisions! Maybe if Shazam was my father and I inherited the Wisdom of Solomon instead of these Bracelets of Submission,” she took off the fingerless black lacy gloves she’d been wearing to reveal the silver ones beneath, “then  _ maybe _ I’d have a chance.”

“Those are more like… Gloves of Submission, to be fair,” Terry quipped, making her laugh again.

“Yeah, true.” She sighed, “I guess I just wanted some time to run out and… have a little fun before I completely ruin everyone’s lives.”

“Is that why you’re with Oscar?”

She laughed, “Oh god, don’t get me  _ started _ on that weirdo.”

Terry smiled, “Try me.”

He heard Aquaman in his ear, “Is he flirting with Harmonia?”

Bruce answered, “I’m pretty sure he’s flirting with her.”

She glanced away, smiling before looking back to him, “Okay, so… When I first started working at Iceberg, I thought for sure he was going to be some sexist, misogynistic pig turning his dancers into whores, like everyone says his dad did, right? Not even remotely. In fact, I found out from an older lady that not even Penguin was  _ really _ like that behind closed doors. Apparently, his dad grew up being completely dependent on his mom, so he made sure that Oscar grew up the same way.”

“Who was his mom, anyway?” Terry asked.

“One of the dancers. So in some ways, he’s really sweet. Like, when he first asked me out, he found out I didn’t have anywhere to stay and insisted I move in with him. I told him I grew up in Atlantic City and adored being by the ocean, so he bought me this really pretty, seashell encrusted hair brush the other day. But he’s also super invested in what I have to say and what I think and takes me very seriously. On the other hand…” She shook her head, chuckling, “I know he’s sleeping with some of the dancers behind my back. When I catch him, he tells one of the waiters to come over and shag me.”

Terry’s expression fell, “Seriously?”

She nodded, “Oh yeah. And I’m about 95% sure he’s smuggling high powered weapons into town to sell to the local gangs.”

He couldn’t help but rub his eyes, slightly exasperated, “You couldn’t have  _ started _ with that?”

She only grinned, “Well, I’m only 95% sure because I have no hard evidence,” reaching up, she flicked his ear, getting his attention back quickly, “But I’m sure that’s no problem for Batman.”

“Could you say that  _ any _ louder?”

“I could, and because we’re at a fancy dinner party, no one would hear me. I’ve found crowded places to have the most privacy.” She glanced away again.

He noticed this time, and decided to say something, “Are you expecting someone?”

She shook her head, “No, I’m just used to being constantly pursued, it’s weird to just be sitting still and talking to one of my pursuers. I keep expecting someone to come busting through the door.”

He gently slid his hand into hers, giving her a rare smile, “I’ve called them off for the night.”

She returned his smile, “Liar.”

“True. Want to dance?”

Harmonia’s smile widened a little, “No, I have to go, actually. I told the guys I’d only stay for one song because I had to dash back to Iceberg after, but that I was before I spotted you staring.”

Terry pretended to pout, “Stay for one more?”

She stood, straightening her dress, “I’m singing over there and I’m going to be late already. If you want to talk more, you’ll just have to meet me at the Iceberg.”

When she left, Terry only waited around for a minute or two before leaving as well. “That went better than I expected,” he finally said once in his car outside. He hit a button on the seat in front of him, pulling up a dual view, one of the Batcave and one of the Watchtower.

Connor pulled away from the building, the whole team in the car with them, “Which part? Harmonia opening up about why she ran off or you getting to flirt with her?”

Terry shot a look into the back of his head, making Bart laugh. “It’s all part of the job, Kon-El.”

“So what are you going to do, Terry?” Kara asked, cutting into the conversation before it pissed Aquaman off any further.

“Meet her at the Iceberg, of course. She’s expecting me.”

“It’d be rude to let a lady down like that,” Bruce chimed in, and Terry could only just detect the smirk in his voice, those his face didn’t betray any emotion.

Aquaman finally calmed himself enough to speak, “Batman should not go to the Iceberg. Harmonia is already betrothed, she cannot risk falling for his  _ charms _ .”

“Wait,  _ what _ ?” Kara asked, spinning around to face him, “You didn’t mention this before.”

“She’s engaged to an Atlantean noble,” Queen Diana supplied, “Has been most of her life.”

Mera jumped in, “Her birthday in six months isn’t just her coronation, but also her wedding day.”

“How old  _ is _ she turning?” Connor asked from the front seat.

Aquaman answered, “Eighteen. I would feel more comfortable if Kon-El went to the Iceberg Lounge. I don’t expect him to try and seduce her in a dark corner.”


End file.
